


All Too Well

by littleleeds



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-02
Updated: 2013-01-02
Packaged: 2017-11-23 09:16:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/620515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littleleeds/pseuds/littleleeds
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on “All Too Well,” by Taylor Swift, AU in which Larry breaks up because of the pressure of living in the spotlight; Louis’ POV.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All Too Well

**Author's Note:**

> Title: All Too Well  
> Rating: G   
> Warnings: Angsty  
> Summary: Based on “All Too Well,” by Taylor Swift, AU in which Larry breaks up because of the pressure of living in the spotlight; Louis’ POV.  
> Word Count: 1,073  
> A/N: It’s 4 am so I apologize if there are a lot of grammatical errors; it just came to me while I was trying to sleep.

His thin, long fingers gripped the sides of the cardboard until he felt as though it might rip. His bicep stretched uncomfortably under the weight and he decided that by the time he got to kitchen, it was time to take a break. Sliding the box onto the island in the middle of the abandoned kitchen, Louis heaved a sigh and slid onto one of the lone stools and rested his head in his hands, his elbows sitting on the cold granite. He felt an overwhelming sense of home, sitting in their old flat. If he ignored the stabbing pain in his chest, and the tears prickling at the sides of his eyes, he could almost smile at the fondness of the place that he used to spend every free moment he had in. He remembered this flat being their respite until one day, it wasn’t anymore. Their respite came from slamming doors and seedy pubs and screaming until they were both red in the face. Sighing again, Louis’ face pulled together as he peered in the box, and grabbed the thickly bound book that sat on top. He knew exactly what it was from the moment he saw it, and the way his stomach turned told him he knew it was unwise to open it.  
Over the past months, Louis had grown exceptionally talented at putting his feelings away. When they first broke up, he couldn’t even say his name in his own mind, it felt like the end of the world. He stopped sleeping, stopped eating, and when he was forced to eat he would feel sick and sometimes even vomit. He wasn’t a functioning human being when he left, and it took him a long time to get his bearings and gather the pieces that were left of his life. The band broke up, of course, and they all took the rest of their money and split the royalties; going their separate ways. Louis threw a nice chunk of money into psychiatrists and therapists, trying to find the root of the problem but finding it impossible because he couldn’t even bear to mention the boy’s name without immediate hyperventilation following. He found it to be pathetic, so he just decided it would be best to steer clear of thoughts of his for the rest of eternity, and it seemed to be working just fine. Louis spent most of his time choreographing now, knowing that the music business would be harsh and cold to him now that he was just a washed-up ex-boy band member. He threw everything he had into it, and almost forgot that One Direction was ever a part of who he was. He had a big house that he stayed in alone, aside from his tiny Maltese puppy that he called Napoleon because the dog’s personality was much too big for his little body.   
Refocusing his attention, Louis sucked in a deep breath and opened the cover of the photo album. There were pictures of the cerulean-eyed boy sitting on the lap of a culy-headed one who seemed younger in the face, but over-sized in the body. His lanky extremities twisted and intertwined with what Louis recognized as his own. He traced his thumb over the picture and tried to remember his smell. When they were together it was one of Louis’ favorite things and now it was something that he couldn’t even remember; he felt his eyes prickle again. He flipped past the first page, with only the one picture and the title “Louis + Harry: Our Story.” The next page held both of their X Factor tags, laminated and placed into the book carefully with stickers. Their audition photos and the first pictures that they took together sat on the page and Louis found himself swimming through the memories that he taught himself to forget. His eyes swam with tears that fell onto the dark pages of the book, and he sniffled audibly. His eyes traveled from the pages to the digital clock on the stove in the kitchen, where he read that it was 4:30pm. He scolded himself, as he was supposed to be out of the flat and leave his key on the counter by 4, so he slammed the book shut and ignored the dust that rose from the pages. He decided it would be best to leave the book on the counter and he put his key on top of the book. Still choking back his tears, Louis wiped at his eyes roughly and could feel his eyes beginning to swell from the irritation. He walked past their old bedroom, where secrets had been sealed with kisses and whispers in the dark. He walked past their old bathroom, where Harry had taken a bubble bath with Louis after every night that he had spent with Eleanor, rubbing his tense shoulders until Louis laughter was bouncing off the walls and reverberating through the halls. He remembered it all and it only seemed to overwhelm him more and more as he got closer to the door. He was resigned to the idea that he would never see this place again, that the memories would die out and never come back again. He knew that there was no going back and as he gripped the door knob, he looked back and saw the haunted memories fading fast into the abandoned flat. He twisted the door knob and sniffled again, closing the door behind him. He heard a noise to his right and he saw a full head of curls emerge from a smooth black sport car. He walked down the steps and did his best to take deep breaths, trying to hide that he had been crying. He looked up and found that he hadn’t moved an inch since getting out of the car, and his green eyes were bearing down upon him with intensity. Louis swore to himself and turned left, to get to his car, his back to Harry. Louis prayed that he would just let him go.  
“Lou!”


End file.
